Freedom woman gets 4 years in prison for fatal DUI crash

Maria Villegas de Munoz, who was charged for vehicular homicide after she killed an Aromas man in a drunk driving accident two years ago, awaits her sentence from Judge Paul Burdick on Friday in Santa Cruz Superior Court.

SANTA CRUZ - At a heart-wrenching court hearing Friday, a Freedom woman was sentenced to four years in prison for a drunken-driving crash that killed an Aromas father of two in September 2010 as he rode his motorcycle with his teenage son.

Family and friends of James Allen Parker filled the courtroom for the sentencing of Maria Villegas de Munoz, who pleaded no contest last month to felony charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence causing bodily injury and driving under the influence with a blood alcohol content in excess of 0.08.

Prosecutor Jason Gill suggested to Judge Paul Burdick that Munoz' crime merited more than the four-year prison sentence that was indicated at the time of her plea. He asked for the Parker family's request for the maximum sentence of 14 years, or if not that, the mid-term of six to nine years in prison.

Any sentence is "nothing compared to what these two young boys are going to have to live with," Gill said. "Ms. Munoz chose to drive her car. She put everyone, including herself, at risk."

Parker's mother, Dorothy Parker, faced Munoz, who sat dressed in red jail clothing and shackles, and told her how much the loss of her son had devastated the family.

"You've denied for almost two years killing my son," she said vehemently. "How can you do that lady? I don't hate you but I hate what you did."

Peggy Parker, who met her husband as a teenager, described him as a dedicated father with a zest for life.

"Maria has sentenced us to a life of pain," she said.

Parker was riding near Thompson Road after picking up his then-15-year-old son, Cody, from football practice. His motorcycle was struck by the car driven by Munoz. The car had drifted across the dividing lines on a sharp curve. Her blood alcohol content was determined to be 0.15 percent at the time of the crash.

Cody Parker, who was injured in the crash, told Burdick that his father had been his best friend. Members of his football team, dressed in maroon-and-white jerseys, attended the hearing to support him.

A slideshow of photographs from Parker's life was shown to the court, accompanied by a sound track that included Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here," and Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings." Relatives of both Munoz and Parker cried throughout the hearing. Munoz sobbed quietly as she sat next to her attorney, Mandy Tovar.

Members of Munoz' family pleaded to Burdick for leniency, describing her as an amazing mother who worked long hours to support her husband and four children. Her 17-year-old daughter, Rosa, described hearing her mother cry nearly every night since the accident.

"The worst thing is to have to live with what I've done," Munoz wrote in a letter read aloud by Tovar. "I know I don't deserve favors but I'm begging for your mercy and the family's."

Burdick told the Parkers that sentencing in these cases is extremely difficult because no sentence will bring back their loved one.